Two Thousand Four

Started: 2004-01-01 00:06:55

Submitted: 2004-01-01 01:10:48

Visibility: World-readable

Yanthor, Humblik, Bitscape, and I returned to the Temple of Castor and
Pollux a few minutes ago, with just enough time left before midnight to
whip up xdaliclock on Bitscape's and mine monitors and count down the
last few seconds of two thousand three. I distributed chilled bottles of
Bawls Guarana and Yanthor queried: Why do we celebrate the new year?
(Might it just be an excuse to party?) What makes new year's
celebrations different from birthdays? Why do we have so many questions
about the existence of life?

Two thousand three was an interesting year in my life. I started the
year with a college degree but without a job. I actually managed to pull
off a few in-person interviews, one which completely ignored my
existence afterwards, one which decided I was unworthy, and one which
eventually assigned me to assemble web transport printers and eventually
sat me down in front of a Windows NT workstation and told me to write
some C code and figure out how to coerce LabView into functioning
properly. Gem spent the year working as church secretary and finished
her masters in library science; two thousand four will be the year she
goes through what I went through last year. I spent the month of January
feeling generally odd; I fixed Hydrogen and finally said goodbye to the
evil Cobalt Buildmeasite had been running on for entirely too long. I'm
not really sure what happened in February besides capturing Babylon 5.
In March, Yanthor and Humblik descended upon the Boulder Compound for a
most entertaining multi-day megafest, the first of many to follow.
"Spring Break" proved a demarcation point; in April, I showed up at iTi
to figure out how to build the web feeds, and in May they actually
started paying me for my time. In June, I helped iTi move, visited Walla
Walla for graduation, and started writing code for iTi. In July, Gem and
I finally managed to move out of my parents' basement into our very own
apartment, where I now sit typing this changelog, surrounded by my
friends, all typing their own web content documenting their thoughts
about this "new year" thing. In August, Gem and I celebrated our
one-year anniversary, Gem started the fall semester of her masters, and
iTi shipped a very expensive ribbon cable. In September, I turned
twenty-three, got one step closer to fixing Willy's computer, took
possession of a second vehicle, started having trouble breathing, and
spent a most entertaining half-week in Lincoln hanging out with the same
people who now sit around me in my living room. In October, I figured
out that I didn't have asthma and began to wonder what I did have. My
work at iTi turned to smaller projects; I began to contemplate how much
longer I might be working at iTi. In November, Gem bribed me with an
iPod, I got my hands on an expensive handheld GPS receiver, and Gem and
I flew to Portland to visit her parents for Thanksgiving. I was promised
a job offer that eventually materialized the first week of December,
finally answering the question of where Gem and I would end up living.
December was especially stressful for Gem; she had papers for her
classes to write and entirely too much Christmas-related music to do. We
survived; we're enjoying our end-of-year vacation.

Two thousand four should be interesting as well. I start work as a real
employee (with benefits and worthless stock options and everything!)
next Monday. Sometime or another, Gem will start looking for job; now
that I have a real job, her geographical options are significantly
limited. Whatever happens at iTi, my work will be interesting. (There's
even a rumor I might end up on a business trip to make sure one of our
products is behaving properly.) In May, Willy graduates from high
school, and Bethany finishes her internship at Campion; in June, my
mother moves to Oklahoma to rejoin my father. Bethany and Willy head to
Walla Walla in September, spreading my immediate family across three
time zones. My twelve-month lease runs out at the beginning of August.
The Temple is comfortable, although Gem feels cramped in the kitchen;
one of these years we'll consider one of these "house" things everyone
else keeps talking about.

Sitting at my right as I type this is Bitscape typing a rambling.
Although I try not to make him nervous by reading what he's reading over
his shoulder, I occasionally sneak a peek, and I know his experiences
in two thousand three differ significantly from mine. He started the
year working in a grocery deli living with his parents and ended the
year working for Scott, still living with his parents. I started the
year working for Scott living with my parents and ended the year on a
significantly higher note. Through my excitement at making it through
two thousand three with a better outlook on life, I am reminded that not
everyone is as fortunate as I. I want to do what I can to support my
friend, but I don't know what that is. So I muddle along and hope I'm
doing more good than harm.

For two thousand four, I want to change a few aspects of my life. I need
to exercise more. I'd like to document my life on a regular basis
(some resurrection of the "journals" I once diligently kept). I'd like
to be more active in BLUG and Hacking Society. I'd like to contribute to
one or more open source projects. I want to make sure that I never take
my beautiful wife for granted. I want to vote intelligently and
carefully in November. I want to continue to be financially responsible.

Here's to two thousand four.

All is quiet on New Year's Day
A world in white gets underway
I want to be with you
Be with you night and day
Nothing changes on New Year's Day
On New Year's Day

I will be with you again
I will be with you again

Under a blood red sky
A crowd has gathered in black and white
Arms entwined, the chosen few
The newspapers says, says
Say it's true it's true...
And we can break through
Though torn in two
We can be one

I... I will begin again
I... I will begin again

Oh...
Maybe the time is right
Oh... maybe tonight...

I will be with you again
I will be with you again

And so we're told this is the golden age
And gold is the reason for the wars we wage
Though I want to be with you
Be with you night and day
Nothing changes
On New Year's Day
On New Year's Day